USA HISTORY

AMERICAN CIVIL WAR(1861 1865)

THE FIRST BATTLE OF BULL RUN

[SOURCES]
How can each side plan the course of the war after what transpired at Bull Run?

(A) ** Smarter generals and more diverse tactics

(B) ** More trained troops

(C) ** secret attacks

EXPLANATIONS BELOW

Concept note-1: -The Confederate victory gave the South a surge of confidence and shocked many in the North, who realized the war would not be won as easily as they had hoped.

Concept note-2: -McDowell’s plan was to move westward in three columns and make a diversionary attack on the Confederate line at Bull Run with two columns, while the third column moved around the Confederates’ right flank to the south, cutting the railroad to Richmond and threatening the rear of the Confederate army.

Concept note-3: -On July 21, 1861, in the first major land battle of the Civil War, a large Union force under General Irvin McDowell is routed by a Confederate army under General Pierre G.T. Beauregard.

Concept note-4: -The North hoped to blockade southern seaports, to gain control of the Mississippi River to control transportaion and cut the South in two, and to capture Richmond. The South’s plan was simpler–southerners planned to defend their territory until the northerners tired of fighting.